of an obscure nature; "the new insurance policy is written without cryptic or mysterious terms"; "a deep dark secret"; "the inscrutable workings of Providence"; "in its mysterious past it encompasses all the dim origins of life"- Rachel Carson; "rituals totally mystifying to visitors from other lands"
beyond or outside an area of immediate interest; remote; "a suggestion ulterior to the present discussion"; "without...any purpose, immediate or ulterior"- G.B.Shaw
put down by force or intimidation; "The government quashes any attempt of an uprising"; "China keeps down her dissidents very efficiently"; "The rich landowners subjugated the peasants working the land"
conceal or hide; "smother a yawn"; "muffle one's anger"; "strangle a yawn"
envelop completely; "smother the meat in gravy"
deprive of the oxygen necessary for combustion; "smother fires"
deprive of oxygen and prevent from breathing; "Othello smothered Desdemona with a pillow"; "The child suffocated herself with a plastic bag that the parents had left on the floor"
form an impenetrable cover over; "the butter cream smothered the cake"
resembling an oracle in obscurity of thought; "the oracular sayings of Victorian poets"; "so enigmatic that priests might have to clarify it"; "an enigmatic smile"
not clear to the understanding; "I didn't grasp the meaning of that enigmatic comment until much later"; "prophetic texts so enigmatic that their meaning has been disputed for centuries"
an enlisted man of the lowest rank; "our prisoner was just a private and knew nothing of value"
concerning things deeply private and personal; "private correspondence"; "private family matters"
confined to particular persons or groups or providing privacy; "a private place"; "private discussions"; "private lessons"; "a private club"; "a private secretary"; "private property"; "the former President is now a private citizen"; "public figures struggle to maintain a private life"